Moldova's breakaway republic sees peacekeepers as only solution for Karabakh

TIRASPOL, April 6. /TASS/. Transdniestria thinks that only a peacekeeping operation is capable of ensuring peace in Nagorno-Karabakh, the breakaway republic said in a declaration adopted by the parliament on Wednesday.

"Long-term truce is possible only if there is a system of guarantees for maintaining peace which cannot be changed by a unilateral decision of one of the sides," the declaration stated. Parliamentarians also noted the success of the peacekeeping operation in Transdniestria under Russia’s auspices.

"Over the time that Russian peacekeeping forces worked in the area of Moldovan-Transdniestrian conflict, the main goal was reached - lives of citizens were saved and military actions were eliminated," the declation said adding that "they became the basis which for searching for peaceful ways to resolve disagreements."

The Transdniestrian conflict started in March 1992 when the first clashes occurred between Moldovan police and Transdniestrian militia near the city of Dubossary, which were followed by an outbreak of armed hostilities. By summer, it had developed into large-scale fighting in Bendery, where about a thousand people were killed and tens of thousands were wounded and became refugees.

The fratricidal war was stopped after a peace agreement was signed in Moscow in July of the same year and Russian peacekeepers were brought into the conflict area. Since then, they have been guarding peace and calm in the region, together with their Moldovan and Transdniestrian colleagues, thus allowing Chisinau and Tiraspol to conduct negotiations on the settlement of the conflict around the breakaway republic.

On Saturday, April 2, the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh rapidly deteriorated when the parties to the Karabakh conflict accused each other of violating truce along the front line. The claims came from defense authorities of Armenia and of Azerbaijan. The defense ministries of Armenia and Azerbaijan announce cessation of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh starting from 11am on April 5.